


sweet as chamomile

by cloverhoon



Category: Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, fast burn BC THEY HAVE TO, foodblogger!daniel, honestly i have 0 knowledge about new york paris and french, i dont even know how to cook smh, nielwink, photographer!jihoon, youtuber!ong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-05-14 08:51:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14766422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cloverhoon/pseuds/cloverhoon
Summary: Daniel has everything planned ahead: travel to the city of baked goods, taste some Jackques Torres's chocolate cookies and meet up with his best friend Ong Seongwu. He is supposed to stay in New York for five days then head straight home to Korea. The keyword: is supposed to.So when Seongwu decides that Daniel should make a 'little' detour to France, Daniel feels a mixture of happiness and annoyance. But at least Seongwu has the tendency to assign a cute tour guide for him.





	1. prelude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> daniel's pissed at seongwu (and the other way around?!)

 

 _❝_ _Spring passes and one remembers one's innocence._

_Summer passes and one remembers one's exuberance._

_Autumn passes and one remembers one's reverences._

_Winter passes and one remembers one's perseverance._ _❞_

_— Yoko Ono_

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Daniel often thinks that he has the best job in this world. The job that people would _die_ for. Like literally _die_ (Daniel has receipts on this particularly appalling event that he rather forget completely). Because who doesn’t want to be the first one who tastes the latest, hottest food in town (and out of town, technically)? Or engulfing yourself in the bursting flavors of a restaurant’s specialty? Or maybe just enjoying the way the heavenly yet too-greasy-for-your-health bacon goes down your throat?

If you think that Daniel, _the_ Kang Daniel, is a food critic—a prestigious one that is, you’re not wrong, but not quite right either. Rather than a food critic, he has a way more likable job—a food blogger. There’s this slight difference between the two. It lies in how they write their posts. Food critics have to be formal, and Daniel doesn’t like it. He can’t stand not being able to express his exploding feelings towards the food he eats properly. Heck, food critics are not even allowed to use emoji! But the main reason he detests food critics is that they say bad things about the food once in a while, even the chefs, so bad that the ‘victims’ have to close down their business completely. _That_ is the power of food critics. Daniel can’t blame them completely because well, it’s their job. But no thanks, he doesn’t want to be one of them.

Needless to say, Daniel is indeed famous. He is one of those reputable food bloggers that posts all sorts of food review in his blog regularly. From local dishes like tteokbokki (rice cake) to authentic desserts like apfelweintorte (apple cider cake), they are all in his blog, written carefully to prevent any shattering hearts—at least not too severe—because he believes that every inch of food is made with love.

It’s simple to say that Daniel likes his job.

No.                                                                       

He _loves_ his job.

Being a food blogger means Daniel can eat whatever food he wants to, take pictures of it in an embarrassing manner without worrying about secondhand embarrassment (that only applies for him though) and pour whatever feelings he has towards the food with any words he wants to use. Don’t get him wrong. He still says it if the food tastes bad, but rather than ‘shitposting’ it on the internet, he prefers saying it head-on to the chef _subtly_. It goes something like: “ _Hey, why don’t you add some more salt here?_ “ or something like _“Can you put some parsley over here so it looks a bit… fancier?”_ sometimes plus a sneaky little wink. The good thing is, the chefs don’t mind, honestly. Because they know who he is, blog user apeachlife who has a great influence in the buzzing food industry—and he’s only trying to help. Not to mention that everything that is embraced by Daniel will turn into gold. In other words, just a tiny little mention in his posts will bring immense fortune to the said party.

 

 

* * *

 

                                                      

 

It is an unusually chilly morning in New York. Daniel wakes up too early today and doesn’t move an inch from his bed for half an hour. When he decides that his body is able to function properly again, he fishes his phone out from his back pocket and immediately texted his best friend slash blogger bro, Ong Seongwu who happens to be in the same city as he is.

 

 **daniel [8.30 am]:** hEY

 **daniel [8.30 am]:** ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

 

He doesn’t expect the older to reply him immediately, knowing him as a very terrible texter and it is still morning in the middle of vacation after all. So he surprises himself when his phone screen lights up and reveals a new message from him ten minutes later.

 

 

 **seongwu [8.40 am]:** If this is about ‘ah i finally perfected my terrine!!’ again i’m out

 **daniel [8.41 am]:** ???

 **daniel [8.41 am]:** i WASN’T EVEN ABOUT TO SAY THAT

 **daniel [8.43 am]:** But now that you’ve reminded me

 **daniel [8.43 am]:** A new one has been in the fridge for idk nearly a day?

 **daniel [8.44 am]:** Come over

 **seongwu [8.45 am]:** This user has blocked you. Please try again.

 **seongwu [8.46 am]:** Scratch that, never try again.

 **seongwu [8.46 am]:** I hate u

 **daniel [8.46 am]:** Nah, u love me

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

The tall, lanky figure enters the room to the smell of grilled—no, _baked_ meat. _Sigh_ , he thinks to himself, _should I really go through this again?_ But his thought is interrupted merely by the sight in front of him. Messy ash-grey hair that drives even the most self-contained girl wild. Wrinkled white shirt which emphasizes his wide shoulder, so wide that the thought itself shudders the Pacific Ocean. And a certain stupid grin is plastered on his face. The man looks endearing—almost, if not for the fact that he’s leaning too casually by the kitchen counter it seems like he can fall any second like a big idiot he is. The figure’s eyes dart to the dining table and _uh-oh._

“I know you can’t refuse this terrine of mine,” Daniel coos proudly. “So I prepared an extra one just for you.”

On the table lies exactly two plates of the said dish, arranged neatly and beautifully as if it was some extravagant dish. It even looks tempting, but Seongwu knows better.

He sighs. “I’m only here to prevent you from puking all over this big ass apartment,” he says blithely as he hangs his coat on the hat stand. “Besides, I can’t miss the disaster my friend has created right? Let’s see… Shall I go live?”

Daniel frowns. He doesn’t like the sound of it. He perfectly knows that his terrine still has a long way to go and he is no chef—who is he even kidding. What if Seongwu unintentionally—or maybe intentionally—spews the food in his mouth and blurts out that it tastes horrible? His hundred thousand subscribers will surely question Daniel’s credibility. He’s sure that it won’t affect their view on Daniel’s food reviews but he sometimes posts food recipes (unique and intriguing, if he must say) and things might go bad if they find out that he feeds a well-known youtuber some lousy food. He shudders at the thought.

“No, thanks,” Daniel replies meekly.

Seongwu smirks. He definitely enjoys teasing him. “Why not? Let the whole world know that Kang Daniel traveled 11000 km from Seoul to New York just to eat French cuisine!”

“Why not?” Daniel asks back. “It’s not like we can’t eat sushi back in Korea, right?”

“We can,” the older replies almost immediately.

“And I did eat American food, okay? Or New York? Uh…” Daniel squints his eyes as he tries to figure out whether American food is New York food or New York food is American food, or perhaps neither. He gives up after a few millisecond and continues, “Besides, I’m sure that I ate more eggs benedict and mac and cheese than those New Yorkers can in just 3 days. Not to mention that I—“

Wait a second. Did he agree with him just now? Did _the_ Ong Seongwu surrendered and left the battle without putting up a fight?

“Did you just say we can eat sushi in Korea?”

“Uh-huh,” Seongwu said nonchalantly while plopping himself into the sofa. “Now bring those terrine over here. I prefer eating _that_ while watching TV, so I can distract my mind a little from the horrible taste my tongue is about to process.”

The younger eyed the older in pure disgust, who is now sitting as comfortably as he can and resting his feet on the coffee table. And oh gosh, how it stinks! “You do know that I’ll be fined if I don’t leave this apartment spotless and exactly the same as before right?”

“Uh-huh,” he replies. “Don’t worry too much. My socks aren’t dirty, they only smell, no biggie.”

“I’m gonna put this in my ‘why Minhyun-hyung should leave Ong Seongwu: the earlier, the better’ list,” Daniel mutters, hoping the older is far enough not to hear him.

“What?”

Daniel gulps. _Murphy’s Law #1: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong_ , he reminds himself.

He expects Seongwu to tackle him, at least leaving his coffee table alone, or ask why he has such list when he knows perfectly well that they are indeed head over heels for each other (he won’t admit this to him though). But what he gets instead is a slightly offended remark: “You address Minhyun as hyung? And I, merely 16 days younger than him, am called by my first name and threatened by you?”

He nervously placed the two plates of food on the coffee table right beside Seongwu’s legs along with two forks and knives. On a usual day, he can fire him back with another (nasty? But _nasty_ is not in his blood) remark because they usually joke around like that, but right now he can’t, and he partially blames it on his own judgment on how properly functioned is his body because well, it doesn’t work as properly as he thought because what forms in his mouth is a bratty excuse a 5-year-old boy usually comes up with:

“He remembered my birthday, wishing me at exactly 12.00 am and actually gave me a present while you messaged me at 11.58 pm and it was only because Minhyun-hyung reminded you to.”

Daniel slaps himself mentally. Hundreds of possible excuses and he came up with that? He is indeed worthy of the nickname Kang Choding.

“If I hadn’t known better I would have thought my own boyfriend was in love with you,” he said rather amusedly. Then he is doubled over in glee. “But seriously? _Presents_? Can’t your brain think of another reason?”

The younger can’t help but laugh as well. They end up talking for hours about work and life, mostly Daniel talking how good Jacques Torres’ chocolate cookies are (“How can a cookie be that chewy and taste so heaven-like?” which receives an eye roll from the older) and Seongwu recommending some restaurants for Daniel to visit before leaving, terrine long forgotten on the table.

At some point, they finally eat the food Daniel had ‘experimented’ on. Daniel thinks the taste isn’t half bad, just a little too salty and the chicken meat is slightly over _baked_ , so he doesn’t _puke all over his big ass apartment_ like what Seongwu predicted hours before, that is, unfortunately, the good news. The bad news is, Seongwu is currently crouching by the closet, trying so hard not to vomit but is there in the restroom just in case. Well, maybe he did put too much salt in it. Oops.

After the older’s stomach feels a lot better (plus his constant muttering of how this going to get in the way of his work later), the both of them decide to call it a day.

Daniel lies on his bed dejectedly as he tries to figure out what ingredients he mistakenly added (or didn’t add). He feels that he pulled the recipe all right, so what’s wrong?

 _Uh-oh_ , he thinks. _Murphy’s Law #5: If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something._

Now the question is: what did he overlook?

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

 **seongwu [1.12 am]:** speaking of your attitude towards me because of your birthday present

 **seongwu [1.12 am]:** I’ve found the perfect birthday present just for you

 **seongwu [1.12 am]:** make sure to call me hyung ;;)

 **seongwu [1.23 am]:** WHY ARENT YOU ANSWERING

 **seongwu [1.30 am]:** o shit

 **seongwu [1.30 am]:** your flight’s tomorrow now i remember

 **seongwu [1.30 am]:** little daniel is sleeping right now OWIE

 **seongwu [1.31 am]:** anyway meet me in front of gate 6 terminal 1 9 am tomorrow

 **seongwu [1.31 am]:** gonna send my best friend off alrighty right

 

 

“What the actual fuck?” Daniel squints at the tiny screen on his nightstand. “Is he drunk?”

Daniel assumes this because Seongwu never goes to bed after 12 am unless well, he’s drunk. He’s the type of person who cares a lot for his skin and nags a lot if he doesn’t get his proper beauty sleep. Second, wow did he really have the heart buy him a birthday present? The answer is a big no-no. Not that he’s stingy or anything, it’s just that Daniel forgot to give him one on his birthday as well and he doesn’t think the older is too generous for that. Last but not least… 9 am? He must be mistaken. His flight is at 1, so he needs to be there at 11 the latest, why need the hurry?

He stares at his phone for 10 minutes, afraid that he read the message wrong. Or is it just another prank from him to make the younger look dumb, sitting alone at the airport? If Daniel has to think positive, maybe… Just maybe, Seongwu wants to treat him breakfast? That’s highly unlikely, so he just shrugs at the idea and heads to shower instead.

Ah, he really can’t wait to return to his family. His mom, his precious friends in the form of cats—Peter and Rooney. And he longs for the smell of Busan air—a hint of salt from sea, yet sweet. A smell undeniably called home.

 

 

* * *

 

                                                      

 

His wandering mind is interrupted by the sound of his phone’s notification and Daniel is sure he’s never snatched his phone this fast. Well, except for that time when that new Chinese restaurant just opened and he made a reservation as soon as his ‘insider’ man told him so. The things he did for some exquisite tofu he saw on flyers. He scrunches his nose when he saw the sender’s name—none other than the man who bombarded him with what he refers as ‘Uhh what’ questions with capital U, Ong Seongwu.

 

 **seongwu [8.13 am]:** i know i said 9

 **seongwu [8.13 am]:** but please come here right now

 **seongwu [8.13 am]:** wtf u left me on read???

 **seongwu [8.14 am]:** nvm pls come here ASAP

 

“Uh should I really…?” Daniel asks. Seongwu seems to hear him telepathically because another message appears almost immediately. Upon seeing it, the younger hurriedly settled on a black hoodie, brown yellow beanie and the same tone color for his coat and rushes out of his apartment. He smiles to himself for exactly two reasons. One: he can’t believe he still looks good even when he didn’t choose his clothes beforehand. Two: can’t deny free delicious food now, can he?

When the food blogger arrives at the place the older had told him to, he expects a drunk-looking man (but still looks exceptionally good) with a bag of the mouth-watering food he had sent Daniel earlier. What he finds instead is… Well exactly the same with what he had in mind, except the older looks normal, with not even a hint of alcohol.

“Why are you looking at me weirdly?” Seongwu said as he hands him the burritos (talk about an exquisite way of bribery). “You have seen this man countless times so don’t act like you haven’t seen gorgeous people.”

The younger takes a seat beside him and dwells in the rich flavor of the Mexican dish. Burritos really never disappoint. Maybe he doesn’t have to admit that he has been thinking that he’s drunk since last night. “Get rid of that smug look on your face. Did you nag Minhyun-hyung again to choose your outfit?”

The foolish grin on Seongwu’s face confirms it. He points his milk turtleneck and Gucci blazer. The older would never wear such clothes if Minhyun, who is now about 11000 km away, didn’t tell him to. “What a dependable boyfriend,” he said dreamily.

“You are disgusting.”

“—ly in love, yes, you got that right.”

“… Have I told you how disgusting you are?” Daniel replied as he takes another burrito from the plastic bag.

“Not that I remember of, fortunately.” Seongwu munches his burrito brightly. Who doesn’t love burritos? The younger is surely going to write this on his blog later. “You really need a boyfriend.”

Daniel tries so hard not to choke on his precious burritos. “I need what?!”

“The peanut butter to your jelly, the ice to your cream, the pepperoni to your pizza, honestly you get what I mean.”

Of course Daniel knows perfectly what the older meant. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), he is too busy having fun travelling and tasting new and extraordinary food to even care. But deep inside his heart, he realizes that he does care… He blames the couple for this.

He rolls his eyes. “I don’t need a boyfriend because I already have one.”

Before Seongwu can process what the younger meant, he lifts his hand and shows the half-eaten burrito. “Say hello to my sexy boyfriend.”

“This is exactly why you should get yourself a loving and caring boyfriend like I do, you Panini head. And did you just call it _sexy_?”

“Well if you put it that way, I am as sexy of a panini as my burrito boyfriend.” Daniel proceeds to bite his food.

Seongwu shakes his head in disbelief. “What blasphemy! Cannibalism!”

“The pros of having him as a boyfriend is that he can make my fill my endless stomach—a suitable boyfriend for a hungry food blogger like me.” Another bite. “Maybe you should try trading Minhyun for him.”

“Kang Choding. You are indeed unbelievable.”

“And anyway, Daniel?” The older looks at his watch. “I suggest you finish your burrito now and go into the damn gate immediately.”

“Huh?” Is he still thinking that he has an early flight?

“I said finish your food fast, Mr food blogger,” he then points to the gate, where there stands a scary looking officer who is currently checking tickets. “You have to enter that gate, like now.”

Daniel raises his eyebrows as he gulps the last bite of his burrito—or more likely, _boyfriend_. “But my flight is at 1 though?”

“Well, about that…” The older fishes out two strips of white paper from his pocket. “Ta-dah!”

The younger has to double check to ensure his eyes aren’t doing any tricks on him. Why are there tickets on Seongwu’s hands… his guts tell him that he better off not knowing.

“What’s with the excess of tickets? You know I bought one already right?”

“Yes, but to different destination. The ones I bought—“

“What.” Daniel cuts him.

“—goes straight to the city of love, where it stands the—“

“God damn it, Seongwu. It’s not even April Fools yet.”

“—infamous Louvre museum where invaluable pieces of art belongs, which is I,”

“ONG SEONGWU!” Daniel has finally lost it.

“Ong Seongwu,” he ends with a triumphant smile. “Wow, didn’t expect you to agree with me.” The older said amusedly.

Now, nothing can definitely make the younger happier than strangling his long neck. He can deal with a sobbing, maybe slightly grateful Minhyun later. “Are you indeed drunk?”

The youtuber looks slightly offended, but overall confused, “No, I am not.”

Daniel straightens his posture and subconsciously thinks of a thousand different ways to kill this reincarnation of satan. Does he think he hasn’t made plans with his family yet?

“Stop giving me that death glare. It doesn’t suit you at all.” Seongwu said blatantly. “And I’ve been friends with you a lot longer than I want to so I have a picture what is running in your mind now.”

“Firstly, no, you haven’t made any plan with your family. Heck, your mom doesn’t even know you’re coming back today!”

“Two, again, no, you won’t be regretting this. I promise you.”

“Three, a little detour will be fun right? You don’t have to plan everything to have fun, you know. Be free, Daniel.”

“Last but not least,”

 _No_ , Daniel mutters in his head. _Please no_.

“Happy belated birthday!”

 _Ugh_. Screw Murphy’s Law. This is the worst-case scenario of the outcome of his meeting with the youtuber.


	2. interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> first encounter...
> 
> or not

_❝_ _In the midst of our lives_

_We must find the magic_

_That makes our soul soar._ _❞_

_— Anonymous_

 

 

* * *

 

 

He really thinks that this is a bad idea.

No one, even his best friend, can ruin his day off like this. But when his partner in crime’s cousin’s classmate’s acquaintance’s boyfriend’s needed a hand on the particular thing he’s mastered in—French and was willing to pay him good cash, he didn’t exactly think twice of accepting the offer. Who would have though? Well, that and the fact that Woojin would give him an earful otherwise (he can already hear Woojin’s endless talk on the back of his mind).

He has never imagined that Woojin’s lovely cousin, Daehwi, befriended a Taiwanese guy and he has a connection with a quite handsome man whose boyfriend is a famous youtuber. Real famous, if he should say. Because how else can a busy man like him watch the youtuber’s video?

The problem is, he isn’t going to work with or for the said youtuber, even when he first think so. The youtuber doesn’t even need a single of his French skill. Instead, he is going to be a guide—a personal tour guide to be exact—for a good friend of his, an older man who claims himself as ‘a food blogger, not a food critic’. He means, what even is the difference between them? But he has to admit that his reviews aren’t _that_ bad.

Thinking that his posts aren’t bad is one thing, but travelling with him? Uh… that’s a totally different stuff. He is a total stranger to the blonde and with or without his experience to this kind of field, he isn’t quite thrilled.

Not to mention his hectic schedule which involves a rookie model which means the said model isn’t experienced enough to end the shoot in a day and to Jihoon’s discontent, the model is a little too perfectionist to his liking, so he often asks him to redo his shots just because ‘his hair sticks out way too much there’ which leads to his disoriented sleeping schedule, 4 hours at most every day or even none at all.

That’s maybe why he could pick up Woojin’s call at 3 am and accepted the offer in the first place.

So the man, now dressed in pink sweater, isn’t quite happy either when he found his clients bickering in public, receiving concern and annoyed looks from people.

“And what makes you think I want to go with you?” said the man in a black hoodie whose back faces him. He assumes that person is his travel mate as he is talking (or rather _shouting_ ) to the youtuber. The tone he uses is somewhat scary. He makes a mental note not to make him angry during the trip.

The raven haired man is taken aback for a while, clearly not expecting the response. “Whoa, hold on, future Gordon Ramsay. You’re not going to travel with me. You’re going to travel with _him_ ,” he declared as he points past the ash-grey haired. To him, if he has to be exact. “Say hello to your travel buddy.”

Now, this is not how he wants to be introduced to. He hopes for the usual ‘Daehwi, this is Woojin. Woojin, this is Daehwi’ type of introduction, but instead he thinks that Seongwu dragged him into the frame at that exact time maybe just to lighten up the mood.

The man turns his head and make an eye contact with him, but it ends just as quickly as it starts. He doesn’t miss the slight surprised expression on his face and an image of a huge puppy suddenly flashes on his mind. He has to restrain himself from patting him (him and his animal loving instincts). Then, he faces Seongwu and (he’s 100% sure he sends a telepathic wave to the older) a split second later, the older shrugs as he shoots him a mocking grin.

The man in pink sighs. This will surely be a long weekend.

But it is worth to try, right?

He shows them his brightest smile he can muster, showing off his pearly white teeth,

“Nice to meet you. My name is Jihoon. Park Jihoon.”

It’s maybe just his imagination but his client stumbled a little when he heard his name and he swears Seongwu is trying so hard not to laugh.

“Okay, now that the two of you have met, I shall take my leave,” Seongwu waves at them. “Enjoy the trip, you two!”

That leaves the two of them. Alone.

His client doesn’t seem like the talkative type as he doesn’t say a word to him at all even when they finished checking in. He doesn’t even introduce himself... (Jihoon should have known him in the first place but he’s really bad at memorizing names) and the silence isn’t really helping at all. The only thing it does is increasing the chance of him sleeping in public, with the possibility of unintentionally leaning on his client’s shoulder.

And he seriously doesn’t want that to happen.

“So I heard from Seongwu you’re a food blogger?”

He lifts his gaze from his phone and answered, his voice husky, “Yes, I am. Did Seongwu say this to you?”

“Not really. His—“ Jihoon thinks for a while. Saying ‘Seongwu’s boyfriend’s acquaintance’s classmate’s cousin’ sounds a little bit nerdy, doesn’t it? “Well you can say that I know it from my friend.”

_Phew,_ Jihoon eases a bit _. Isn’t that better?_

His companion doesn’t sound too convinced though.

“Relax. I’m not going to bite, honestly,” and why is he saying this to a man who’s nearly a head taller and a size bigger than him is a mystery. Maybe it’s his way of warming up to puppies and he looks just like one. “Don’t you want to tell me your name? Or if you want I can call you Mr Food Blogger instead.”

Mr Food Blogger immediately blushes. Jihoon assumes he isn’t aware of his own recklessness for not introducing himself to a stranger right away. Cute.

“Sorry about that. I’m Kang Daniel.”

“Ooooh,” Jihoon coes. “The hottest food blogger in town.”

He blushes harder. Jihoon doesn’t understand why (blame his sleepy brain) but a moment later he realizes he might word his sentence wrongly.

“I-I don’t mean like that,” he defends himself. And now why is he defending himself? He didn’t do anything wrong or illegal, in that case.

By now, Daniel is laughing. “Of course you didn’t mean that way. It is just embarrassing when someone tells me that I’m a quite popular guy.”

“Aside from your best friend.”

“Yeah, that.”

The image of him shouting at Seongwu crosses his mind. “About that youtuber guy… Seongwu, I mean. Don’t get too mad on him. It’s not usual for someone to gift his best friend a trip to Paris.” _Unlike my pal Woojin who gave me his stinky socks as a present,_ he recalls.

“Can you not be mad when someone just meddle with you plans?”

“Uh about that,” Jihoon shudders at the thought of his model clients who call him whenever they want to, leaving him no choice but to comply and leave whatever he is doing. “I have a lot of experiences with those kind of people. At this point of time I’m immune to them already.”

“Okay. Plausible,” he replies. “But you see, I’m not mad at him anymore… and uh, sorry about yeah, the thing you saw earlier.” He scratches his head.

“No problem. My best friend and I can fight worse than that, even strangling each other’s neck is a child play to us.”

“I don’t know about your best friend, but you?” he points and the younger. “This guy right here who wears pink sweater and everything about him screams soft can fight?”

Jihoon can’t help but chuckles. “Looks can be a little deceiving sometimes. And don’t belittle the color pink like that. Pink can be fierce too!”

“Whoa, slow down,” he distances himself from Jihoon and raises his hands just to be dramatic, Jihoon assumes. “I love pink too! Even my blog name is apeachlife! You know, _the_ apeach?”

Jihoon must have shown his trademark what-the-fuck look because Daniel looks at him in disbelief. “We barely met and talked, but I am honestly offended.”

“Ha. Funny, Mr Food Blogger.”

“Remind me again why I should tell you my name when you’re going to call me that anyway.”

“I’m aiming for the effects, Mr Food Blogger. And Mr Food Blogger is too long for a nickname, let’s go with Mr Fooder, eh?”

Daniel looks slightly amused at his silly choice for nicknames but decides to go with it.

“Then what should I call you, Mr Pink-Is-Fierce?”

“Can you come up with something more decent,” Jihoon deadpans. “Don’t get me wrong. I love that one, but it sounds like ‘pinkish fears’ when you say it.”

“Okay, I’ll tell you when something _decent_ pops into my mind—“ his sentence is interrupted by the airport lady who ushers them to board into the plane. He turns to look at him in the eye and smiles widely, his bunny teeth visible. “Ready to go?”

Jihoon thinks he sounds like they’re about to compete in a car race.

“I’m ready.”

Ready to travel with not-so-a-stranger-anymore.

Ready to test his new baby (a brand new camera from a sponsor).

Ready to get the break he deserves.

Ready to _be free_.

Honestly it can imply a lot of things.

He smiles at himself.

 

 

Maybe it isn’t such a bad idea after all.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

Being called Kang Choding, Daniel realizes that he really acts like a child. Sometimes, he acts like those children who radiate sunshine everywhere they go, with a hint of playfulness around them. As much as he wants to brag that that is one of his charming points, he acts like the other type of children most of the times; aka a brat, especially around his best friend.

And to be frank, it doesn’t quite help when Seongwu decided to ruin his trip back home by forcing him to go to Paris. ‘Be free’ and ‘Daniel’ doesn’t actually work together. He is a man of well-structured planning and he isn’t happy with someone ruining his plan. Furthermore, he is accompanied by some stranger. That is, if by actually knowing that person’s full name and more or less stalk him on his instagram still labels him as a stranger. (Well, it’s not his fault if his account and pictures are always on his instagram explore and his shots are mesmerizing to his eyes!)

To put it simply, Kang Daniel won’t go anywhere without noticing Park Jihoon. He has his eyes set on the young photographer since God knows when, and his hands are itching to hire him as his (or more likely _his food_ ) photographer. Jihoon’s shots bring out every little detail of the objects, with the way he plays with the natural lighting aka sunlight and camera angles. It’s as if he is given a blank piece of paper, he can still take a good shot from it.

It is safe to say that Daniel had a mini heart attack when his eyes landed on the blonde’s earlier that day. The pink knitted sweater fits him perfectly and he finds it lovely. Or when he flashes his blinding smile to him, not knowing that the latter had known him from the constant stalking. At this point, it’s safe to say that Daniel idolizes Jihoon and his inhumane photography skill.

And to think that the younger saw him ‘fight’ with his own best friend… Daniel feels down immediately. Why didn’t he ever grow up, and actually talk with him over that matter nicely?

First impressions matter the most, to him at least. As a food blogger, you won’t be seeing him eating at the same restaurant again if he finds their food doesn’t suit his taste before. And now he has made a pretty bad first impression of himself (though they younger had said he’s okay with it), moreover to the very person he’s interested in working with.

The very same person whose head is now resting on Daniel’s broad shoulder.

Or rather, leaning _helplessly adorable_ against his shoulder.

After his encounter with the younger, his previous thoughts and anger vanished into thin air just like that. Perhaps that was what made Seongwu decided to leave immediately (the most logical explanation was because both Daniel and Jihoon had to check-in at that time or else his hard work in obtaining the tickets would be in vain, or maybe he’s just afraid of Daniel strangling him, now with an entirely different motivation) and left him alone with the doe-eyed photographer. Well, this was bound to happen sooner or later anyway and in his case, it pretty much happened as soon as they met.

Jihoon appears to be a fun companion, and a pretty good talker, though he may not realizes it, judging from the way he never looks him in the eye whenever they talk. Good thing he has the same low sense of humor as him, unlike Seongwu who always look at him judgingly when he laughs at something.

He hasn’t gained any new information as of now, only stuffs that he had known before. Well, it’s not the younger to blame as he has no idea that Daniel stalks him on his social media.

Daniel feels like a creep.

Maybe he is.

But hey, he needs to hire Jihoon for business! And for that, he needs to find essential information to consider his requitment!

( _But at the same time, he can’t seem to lift his gaze off him… Does this still count as business-like?)_

Maybe it’s because of his eyes that resembles pools of galaxies, but it’s still an understatement, as his eyes alone can make those collection of stars hide in shame.

The younger shifts his position a little. He mutters something, so soft that it may sound as a purr.

“How adorable,” Daniel blurts out.

It’s been 7 hours since they departed, and truth to be told Daniel can’t feel his shoulder anymore. The blonde dozed off almost as soon as they took off, head slightly banging the window. Being the gentleman that he is, he _sacrifices_ his shoulder to him.

( _It’s obviously not because he wants to be nearer to him. Not at all.)_

He shifts again. Daniel is sure he’s waking up for real now.

_In 3… 2… 1…_

“Come to your sense now, Sleeping Beauty?”

 

 

* * *

 

  

_Mission Not to Sleep Even When You’re a Living Zombie: Failed._

He had thought earlier that he could manage a day without sleep again with Daniel on the picture, a friend to keep him awake.

Unfortunately, it just didn’t work.

Moreover, his unconscious body decided to lean on his. For 7 hours straight. Oh great.

But now is not the time to be flustered (although he wants to do nothing but screams at the top of his lungs at how ridiculous it is to do that to the person you just met???) Given that the youtuber (through his boyfriend etc. until it reached Woojin) had told Jihoon beforehand that the whole trip would be a _pleasant_ surprise, he expects Daniel to be completely clueless. Now he only has less an hour to fill him in, of what they will do once they arrive and why Seongwu assigned him to accompany him, or maybe basic stuffs like when he will return to his initial destination—Busan.

Jihoon clears his throat. “So, to keep it simple, Mr Fooder right here only has a day in Paris.”

“The sooner, the better I think?”

“The living fee in Paris is very high, and your friend wants to save money. But believe me, even sending you—both of us here has already cost him a fortune,” he smiles. “That’s nice of him actually, planning all this in one day.”

“We’ll arrive at around 1 am, local time.” He adds.

“Err… Isn’t it the stewardess’ job to do that? Telling you what time is it now and how many hours ahead this city compared to that city is?” he asked questionably.

The blonde ignores his rhetorical question and continues, “Go to sleep as soon as you arrive at the hotel because I’m waking you up at 7 am sharp. Uh, I do hope you’re used to a 5 hour sleep.”

The older gave him an okay gesture, “Aye, aye, captain! Though I much prefer if you gave me a whole 8 hour sleep.”

At this, Jihoon gives him a knowing glance. “I’m sorry but you have to do that to enjoy Paris to the fullest. I personally think any working adult like us treats a 5 hour sleep as a gift from heaven.”

“Figures,” the older chuckles. “That’s why you woke up looking so damn happy as if you just landed to Neverland or something from that 7 hour sleep.”

“Touché,” the younger nods in acknowledgement. “It’s my first decent sleep this week. I didn’t even sleep last—“

“You _what_?” Daniel cuts him. His expression stern.

He doesn’t know why but his voice become timid, as if he was about to commit a huge crime. “Didn’t… s-sleep last night?”

“Jihoon, you just can’t do that!” he scolds him. His eyebrows are scrunched up from what Jihoon determined as worry.

_Finally he called me by my name_ , the younger grins as a sudden surge of happiness gush over him. _Why does it sound so good when he’s the one says it? Wait, oh, why—_

“Don’t get all smiley,” he scowls. “This is a serious matter. It’s not good for your health, for your body.”

“But—“

“No buts. Now that I’m here I’ll make sure you’ll get what every human gets—a nice, 8 hour sleep. You’re welcome.”

Jihoon wants to fight back that he’s perfectly fine with it. It’s the consequence of being a photographer, working with models, singers, idols, basically working with famous people whose schedules are messy as heck, but thinks better of it. He has a feeling it will turn into a full scale fight and a 5 or 8 hour sleep doesn’t worth his energy.

The rest of the flight is silence.

After they secure they luggage, they call a taxi and head straight to their hotel which take them at least 30 minutes from the airport. Luckily for them, no one is having an illegal car race in the middle of the night, so the road is clear.

Jihoon is too tired to notice the surroundings of the hotel. He can do that tomorrow. Is it only his feeling but why is Daniel looking at him weirdly? Oh, he hasn’t told him why he’s there yet. Well, that can wait too.

He has denied it all this time, but his body is truly craving for rest. So the younger plops into the bed, entering immediately to the Sleep Zone.

But he doesn’t miss the small, sweet voice that is no louder than a whisper,

 

“Good night, Jihoon-ah.”

 

And he goes into a deep, deep sleep.

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

_Another Mission to Wake Up Early and Prove Daniel Wrong That He Can Sleep Only For 5 Hours: Failed_

Jihoon knows he is screwed when the sunlight peeks mischievously from the chickadee curtain, resulting a golden hue in his room. He would’ve stopped for a while and admire its beauty if not for the fact that he had woken up late. So much for an early tour.

He exits his room hurriedly only to find Daniel chilling in the kitchen. In contradiction with what he wore yesterday, he is now dressed in a white hoodie with a picture of a beagle in it. He can’t tell which one is the real puppy—him or the beagle. He drops his question right away because the beagle is, undeniably, the _real_ puppy.

Putting that aside, whatever Daniel’s making right now is making his stomach growls in hunger. The sweet aroma (Jihoon manages to determine as butter) fills the entire kitchen and dining hall.

Daniel smiles when he spots Jihoon standing by the bedroom door, dumbfounded, with hair sticking out everywhere. “Good morning, or perhaps bonjour will do?” he greets. “Care to join breakfast with me?”

Jihoon chuckles. His French accent is a complete mess. “Bonjour monsieur Daniel.” He greets back with a perfect French. Anyone will think that he’s a local. “Merci, ça marche.”

“I have no idea what that means.” Daniel admits. “But I take it as a yes?”

“Tout à fait,” he replies with a grin.

Soon after, the blonde joins him in the dining hall, sitting across him. He takes his time looking everything around him. Their hotel room is big and comfortable, with a hint of renaissance feeling to it (only the ancient-looking flower vase though). The presence of chandelier makes it look grand—although Jihoon prefers a simple, less energy-consuming light bulb. That makes him thinking…

“Where did you sleep last night, Mr Fooder?” he asked.

“Oh, you don’t remember?” Daniel said as he places the food in front of him. _Ah_ , Jihoon exclaims in his wandering thoughts. _Une tartine with du beurre, no wonder it smells so sweet_. “You hugged me pretty tightly last night. I couldn’t even free myself from you.”

_No._

_No way._

“I-I—“ he stammers as blood rushes to his face. He’s the type to blush easily and the heat he feels from his face indicates that he is now as bright red as a tomato. He can’t possibly sleep with him right? He would rather lean on him for another 391895 times than sleep with him on their first night together. How embarrassing.

Seeing him getting flustered, Daniel laughs out loud. More likely, he’s dying in his own laughter. “Sorry, I didn’t expect you to be that flustered,” he apologizes. “Rest assured, darling. I slept on the couch last night.” He said this while pointing at the couch. Sure, it looks quite disorganized, with a blanket on top of it.

Jihoon doesn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed. Did he just let him sleep on the couch? That’s… kind of rude of him. And with this cold weather, the warmth from the heater doesn’t quite help. He can’t help but picture a shivering puppy seeking warmth within the blanket.

“You should have slept with me…”

“Aww so you really want to hug me?” he teases him.

“Forget I even said it.”

Daniel giggles. Jihoon assumes he’s in a good mood today, maybe it’s because of the Paris effect. “Now we eat, don’t let the toast turn cold!”

 

Jihoon tries to eat it in a bite, seeing how late they are compared to their— _his_ —original schedule, but Daniel scolds him, saying “You must enjoy the food. Eat it slowly, let the taste rule you.”

His toast and butter tastes heaven-like. It’s been a long time since he eats homemade food as his job forces him to maintain his time efficiently, thus he always order fast food. It saves his cash and time. But eating homemade food sure is a pleasure. Eating homemade food made _by Daniel_ is a pleasure.

Or rather, having Daniel around is a pleasure.

 

It’s quite sad, actually, staying on a decent hotel only for a day (precisely 8 hours), thinking it’s free and all. Jihoon would love to stay a little longer but guess his economic heart wouldn’t bear to waste his money on such extravagant place.

He turns his head to face the taller, and they nod in unison.

It’s time for an adventure.

 

Or so they think.


	3. postlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> back with the food...
> 
> ft. photographers!jihoon's debut in this fic

 

 

_❝_ _we began_

_with honesty_

_let us end_

_in it too._ _❞_

_— rupi kaur_

 

 

* * *

 

 

“I’m here because you suck in French,” he says as a-matter-of-factly. “I’m good in French.”

“What makes you think I haven’t figure it out?”

He and Jihoon have been wandering the street of Paris for an hour, and nothing in particular catches Daniel’s eyes. The so called Louvre Museum doesn’t even attract him. So now, here they are, sitting on a log near a half-frozen lake. Daniel wishes it’s frozen enough for them to stand on it, but no, even the weight of a tiny pebble is enough to make the ice crumbles (proved by a bored Jihoon who lazily threw the pebble into the lake, hoping so much it would ‘skip’).

“Être con comme un balai… Because you are dumb.”

“Try me,” Daniel challenges.

“Tu es charmante.” _You are charming._

“You are… a chameleon?”

The younger snorts, “Not bad. J’adore ton sourire.” _I love your smile._

“Uh… I adore tons of soup?”

“Okay, Mr Fooder, you may be smart,” he giggles. “But you are absolutely terrible in French.”

“Give me a break,” he sighs as he stretches his limb.

“Technically, we are _on_ a break.”

Daniel shoots a glance at the blonde, whose outfit looks as fluffy as yesterday: yellow hoodie, matched with a beanie. Guess the post-winter air in Paris doesn’t really affect them. “Do you even remember how we managed to call a taxi yesterday?”

“Not really,” he fakes thinking. “It wasn’t possibly you.”

“Of course it wasn’t me, you dummy. You see first-hand of how bad my French is and everyone here can’t seem to understand English!” he shakes his head. “It was _you_ , talking in a heavy French accent. You even sleep talk in French! Even a foolish person like me can see that you’re here to help me with this language barrier thing.”

“Oh,” Jihoon mutters to himself. “That’s why you looked at me funny.”

 _Well, actually it was because you held my hand so suddenly,_ Daniel holds the urge to say. _Not that you’ll remember any of it._

_He assigns you because he perfectly knows I’m into you. Speaking French is just a plus point. Besides…_

Seongwu had messaged him again earlier that morning, to know how things were going. He was heavily disappointed to find out that Daniel had slept on the couched and kept whining: “That’s why I purposely rent a single bedroom, you moron!”

Daniel had a really hard time convincing Seongwu that he didn’t see the younger _that_ way, but to no avail.

“Honestly, Daniel,” he had typed. “Your eyes always light up when you talk about him, about how you want to hire him anyway, but the point is—you do like him. You may not realize this, but me? As your best friend, I know it.”

If his best friend said that pre-Paris, he would bite his head off in no time because he was sputtering nonsense. But now? He doesn’t know. He likes being near Jihoon, can’t take his eyes off him, always searching for him in the sea of people, wants to— _oh damn,_ he realizes. _I am totally whipped for Park Jihoon._

“Fine. Let’s go, Mr Fooder!” he exclaims. “I can’t stand seeing you wasting your time like this. If you can’t find anything you’re particularly find interesting in, I’ll help you find one.”

“That’s what you’re supposed to do right from the very start. Guide me,” Daniel says. “You’re the tour guide.”

“I prefer you refer me as your travel mate,” Jihoon tells him as he grabs his hand and runs. “Go, go, go! We can’t afford to waste any second more here.”

 

 

_To me, any second is fine as long as I’m with you._

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

Do not ever run during winter. Just don’t.

The two grown-up men—Daniel and Jihoon—learn this the hard way.

They didn’t feel anything when they run, but as soon as they stopped, they were freezing. Luckily, the place Jihoon recommended is right in front of them. On the other hand, unfortunately, it _is_ a food truck. They can’t possibly seek warmth and shelter there.

“Knowing that I’m a food blogger, I’m quite disappointed you didn’t bring me to a 5 star restaurant.” Daniel pants.

“Knowing that you _are_ a food blogger,” Jihoon emphasizes. “I brought you to the place where they serve the best food in town! Bienvenue!”

It turns out the food truck is owned by Jihoon’s friend named Jisung. As soon as he saw them, he shouted as he waved his hand frantically: “Jihoon! Mon ami, ça fait longtemps!” which Jihoon translated to Daniel as ‘my friend here has grown beautiful over the years!”. Daniel wouldn’t believe him and in return he received a smack from the younger.

Jisung is more than happy to know that Daniel is a famous food blogger, so he lets him enter his food truck and pampers him with his specialties. To Daniel’s advantage, he can speak in English— _or at least tries to_ and in his delight, he really does serve good food. Jihoon’s #1 recommendation is Soupe à L'oignon which tastes like a savory bread pudding and it is served warm enough to stop the shivering. Another menu to be added to his blog later.

Next, he tries Jisung’s best-selling cuisine—Piperade.

“Ooh! Ratatouille!” Daniel exclaims upon seeing the dish.

“Non, non!” Jisung shakes his head. “This,” he points at the said Piperade, “and Ratatouille different.”

“Jisung’s piperade use onions and peppers you won’t find in any Ratatouille,” Jihoon helps the chef to explain. “This is better than any 5 star restaurant.”

The food blogger takes a bite and let himself taken away by its explosive and rich flavor. “Yes, indeed it is. Here, have a bite.”

***click***

* * *

 

***click***

The sound is followed by a giggling Jisung. “You both cute,” he says.

“Jisung, ne touche pas mon bébé!” —don’t touch my baby!—, the photographer groans.

Daniel takes the camera from the chef’s grasp. “Don’t worry, it looks perfect to me.”

“I haven’t even used it!” Jihoon complains. He has waited the perfect moment to make _his_ first shot with the camera special.

“Then use it,” the older hands him his camera. “Take a picture of—“

_Such as you. You are special._

“—this food for me.”

“Ew,” he tries to hide his disappointment. “It is half eaten.”

Truth be told, spending a day with Daniel makes Jihoon feel at ease. Daniel is like home to him. He can be the real Park Jihoon in front of him, not some professional photographer Jihoon. He doesn’t experience love often (aside his family and Woojin of course, that’s another kind of love, the one that makes you want to punch his face at the mention of his name. Woojin, not his family), but he notices it right away.

If what he’s feeling right now isn’t love… he doesn’t know what is.

The older laughs. “Okay, that does make sense.”

Daniel looks like he wants to ask Jisung something, but is somehow afraid to. Funny, now he can tell whether Daniel wants something. The next thing he know he will graduate with an Everything Daniel degree. He nudges him, “You can ask him anything, before you go back half across the ocean and all.”

The food blogger hesitates for a moment before he says, “I made a terrine not long ago… and it tastes horrible. Can you show me how to make one? It’s probably why I’m here.”

Knowing Jisung’s limit in understanding English, not to mention long sentences like what Daniel had said, he translated it for him. “S’il vous plait,” he finishes.

“Au plaisir,” the chef smiles.

Jihoon doesn’t have even the tiniest bit interest in cooking, even when Jisung invited him to accompany him to a food seminar years ago, he kindly refused. But seeing the two people in front of him connect and how Daniel’s eye sparkles—all because of food, he cranes his neck to see the process. He can’t miss the way Daniel’s mouth forms into a huge ‘o’ every time Jisung shows him some special tricks.

Can’t miss this perfect moment now, can he?

He positions his camera so he can get the best shot out of this slightly cramped food truck with a really bad natural lighting. Why can’t the sun be friendly just this once…

***click***

The sizzling sound of the oil disguises the camera’s shuttering. Jihoon is glad because Daniel still has his eyes fixated on the terrine, blind to the fact that the younger has taken a picture of him. Good.

The doe-eyed photographer sighs in relief as he finds out his very first special shot turns out alright—he just need to increase the brightness a bit. It really is such a shame to have no sunlight to brighten this place. Daniel’s sun-kissed skin will sure look good in pictures.

He is so lost in his thoughts that he doesn’t realize Jisung has let Daniel finished the terrine by himself and is now standing behind him to look at his shot.

“Je le savais!” he grins at the stunned photographer victoriously. “Tu es amoureux.”

Jihoon steals a glance at Daniel. The blogger is peering at them through the semi-darkness, possibly because of Jisung’s excited exclamation.

If he admits that he is, in fact, in love with food blogger apeachlife aka Mr Fooder aka Kang Daniel, there will be no turning back. At all.

He makes up his mind in a split second, eyes locked with Daniel’s. “Oui,” he admits. “Je suis amoureux.”

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

By the time they bid their farewells to Jisung, his digital watch shows him that it’s 3 pm already. That means Daniel has only an hour left to pack before he goes to the airport. An hour left before their goodbye. Jihoon tries so hard to push that thought to the back of his mind, but it just keeps resurfacing.

If Jihoon feels empty right now, Daniel does surely feel his fullest. He skips around like that of a playful puppy on their way back to the hotel, resulting him a few steps ahead of the younger.

“Say,” the older blurts. “How can Jisung create such delicious food? Honestly the ingredients we use are the same.”

The photographer, now with his camera dangling loosely on his neck, replies, “Well, it’s not about the ingredients. It’s _how_ you cook it.”

“And…?” Daniel anticipates.

Watching Jisung cooks countless times, Jihoon is confident to say that his friend sparks elegance from the way he treats his food and one thing for sure, he is known for his constant experiments with mixture of sometimes incompatible food. “Be free,” Jihoon says. “Following recipes are fine as long as you don’t depend on them too much. Just be free.”

“Be free? Are you sure about that?”

“Yes,” he confirms. “I’m sure of that.”

“Then, how about this as my first practice of being free?”

“Huh?”

Daniel, using the best of his long legs, turns around immediately and engulfs Jihoon in a bear hug. He also plants a small peck on his soft cheeks. “Thank you,” he mutters to his ears. “For being my tour guide even for just a day, for everything.”

As much as Jihoon wants to reply something witty, or something dumb, he can’t. He is too dumbstruck to sputter a single word.

Did Daniel just hug him? And to add that, he also kissed him (on the cheeks, but still)? Love is indeed sneaky, just when you’re about to be apart, it manages to appear and just won’t let go, clinging tightly as if its life depends on it (which technically is true). Anyhow, his actions malfunctions his whole body system.

 _Don’t let go_ , he wants to hug back.

 _Hold me tighter,_ he wants to close the distance between them.

_I love you._

Jihoon clears his throat. “You’re crushing my baby.”

“Oops. The camera,” Daniel chuckles. “Sorry.”

Now that he’s done it, the photographer wants to at least give him a goodbye present, featuring his specialty—photography, for the older to remember him. And he has just thought of a perfect gift.

“Mr Fooder, I think you should go first. I have something urgent to do.”

“Right now?” the taller looks puzzled. “Okay.”

The younger smiles. “Wait for me by the lobby in 30 minutes. Then we’re off to the airport!”

Without waiting for his response, he turns back to where he first came, searching for the nearest photo printing service. Luckily, there's one with a few customers. Agitated, he ran to the printing lady to print the picture he just took.

"Do you want to print this too?" the lady asks him in French, showing him a picture of Daniel feeding Jihoon. Both of them look so happy.  _So this is what Jisung had taken_ , Jihoon thinks.  _Remind me to thank him later._

"Oui, s'il vous plaît," he answers.

The pictures are done in a flash, but he still hasn't come up with what to write on it. Poetry isn't really his strong point though...

After moments of contemplating, he decides to express his raw feelings into plain, direct words. No poetry, no hidden meanings. Just his pure feelings towards the older man. He scribbles the words with a black marker. He only hopes Daniel has the patience to both read his almost illegible handwriting and figure out their meanings because he's going to write it in French—again, just in case.

When he's done, he eyes his masterpiece. “This will do,” he assures himself. In less than 30 minutes, this piece of paper will soon be in Daniel’s hands.

He finds the Samoyed-looking man waiting for him in the lobby. “Come on, Mr Fooder. The taxi’s waiting!” he shouts, not minding the people glaring at him.

“Why are you so eager seeing me leaving?” Daniel pouts as he sits beside Jihoon.

“Me?” Jihoon’s eyes bulge. “I am not at all agitated.”

The older ruffles his hair. “Your eyes can’t lie, dummy. You prepared something for me, didn’t you? Right? Right?”

If Daniel said that Jihoon is excited, then Daniel is _more_ excited than him. Just picture a puppy bouncing up and down, in a taxi, embarrassing Jihoon who apologizes to the amused taxi driver. That’s Kang Daniel.

The doe-eyed ignores his statement. “Is dummy my nickname or? You’re about to go and still haven’t come up with one?”

“Of course not!” Daniel denies. “This brilliant brain of mine came up with something more… brilliant.”

He sneers. “Yeah. Like your lack of vocabulary.”

“Touché.”

 

 

“I guess this is good bye, Mr Fooder,” he tells him when they reach the gate.

“See?” he laughs. “Not even an inch of sadness in your voice. Do you want to get rid of me that much?”

“Let me think… Hmmm…” he says playfully, obviously not thinking just to tease him.

“Sorry, but no can do. We’re bound to meet very soon.” Daniel smiles widely as he wraps his hand around Jihoon.

The younger returns the smile, “How can you be so sure?”

“Let’s just say I don’t trust fate and I have to do things myself to get what I want.”

“And what,” the younger asks, “do you possibly mean by that?”

He grins. “You’ll see. Now give me a hug that I deserve. Am I not a good company?”

“Isn’t it what we’re doing right now? Hugging?”

“This is me hugging you.”

The younger relents. “If you insist… Come here.” He spreads his arms widely. “Like you said, I too, don’t believe in fate, so I hope one day, when we cross paths again, you’ll be the greatest food blogger in the entire universe, then we can know each other more.”

“Remember to be free when you cook.”

“This one day is short. I don’t even know much about you, but thank you.”

Daniel looks at him. “Don’t get too sappy. Like I said, we’re bound to meet soon.”

“Why can’t you just follow the mood… Farewells are supposed to be teary.”

“Because this isn’t a farewell,” Daniel insists as he holds Jihoon’s hands in his. “See you soon.”

He then enters the gate, front still facing Jihoon. Ah, Jihoon can’t believe how positive Daniel is of the possibility of them meeting again. How can they? They don’t even exchange phone numbers. Jihoon doesn’t know where he lives except that he’s from Busan.

Then it hits him.

He’s a public figure. He’s information is all over his blog, the internet.

At this particular moment, Jihoon wants to lean his head again on Daniel’s shoulder.

“And oh, Jihoon-ah!” Daniel exclaims. “When we meet again, can I call you _mine_?”

 

 

_Yeah, we still have all the time in this world. À bientôt, Kang Daniel._

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

Daniel doesn’t know when those pictures were put in his luggage. Jihoon, that adorable guy, his hands are sneaky too.

The first picture, is a picture of two men who are content with their lives. One is feeding the shorter guy and the other is opening his mouth. How adorable. Daniel is absolutely going to frame this one in his room.

The second picture, is a picture of him in a food truck, taken by none other than the man he’s helplessly fallen in love with. That, and he’s fallen for his photography skill as well. He said before that Jihoon’s shots bring out every detail of the objects, but now seeing his shot up close. That is an understatement. Jihoon’s shots bring out _the best_ of the objects.

“Daniel, there’s a writing behind it.” Seongwu is now laying on Daniel’s bed in Busan. Why or how he’s got here, Daniel has no idea. Seongwu had come barging his front door yesterday, insisting him to tell him about his trip to Paris, the youtuber’s gift for him.

“Wait, you’re right.” Daniel realizes.

 

 

┍                                                          ┐

Je pense toujours à toi

Tu me rends heureuse

Je veux être avec toic

M’apprécies-tu?

Est-ce que tu m’aimes?

Je t’aime

└                                                     ┘

 

 

_A love letter… Jihoon confessed to him._

“What is it about?”

“Like I will tell you.”

“C’mon… we all know you speak French. Tell me.”

“Well… except for one.”

Seongwu eyes him suspiciously, “What do you mean?”

“Nothing…” he trails off. “Anyway, about CéCi… Have you told them about my uhh demand?”

“Yes,” he nods. “I’ve told them about your wish to be shot by a certain prodigy young photographer. Lucky for you, they really want to feature you on your magazine or else they will slap you because of your silly demands. And mind you, I am not your manager.”

“But I know I can always rely on you, Hyung.”

“Yes! Finally!” Seongwu celebrates. “About time you call me Hyung! Minhyun. I have to tell Minhyun!”

Daniel doesn’t do anything but laugh. It is indeed a good day.

 

_Jihoon-ah, when we meet again, I’ll be sure to tell you everything. We just didn’t have much time before, now, we sure have all the time in this world._

_Je t’aime, mon chéri. À bientôt._

 

 

.

.

.

.

.

 

 

Je pense toujours à toi.

_I always think of you._

Tu me rends heureuse.

_You make me happy._

Je veux être avec toic.

_I want to be with you._

M’apprécies-tu?

_Do you care for me?_

Est-ce que tu m’aimes?

_Do you love me?_

Je t’aime.

_I love you._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> phew! this is the end~ hope you guys enjoy it (though i'm quite disappointed with how this fic turns out ;u;)
> 
> (kids, this is why you shouldn't procrastinate -- you end up regretting it)
> 
> my boy, park jihoon, this one's for you! have a very happy birthday! <3


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